


Always

by softkent (SalazarTipton)



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Anxiety, Drabble, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, OMGCP 14 Days of Love, rarepair day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-02
Updated: 2017-02-02
Packaged: 2018-09-21 15:03:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9553823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SalazarTipton/pseuds/softkent
Summary: No matter what, even if whatever their relationship has become changes, they'll always have each other.





	

You’d think after all this time, off days and losses would have gotten easier, but nope--each time it twists Jack’s stomach, clenches his throat, and just all around makes him an anxious mess. In front of the team in the locker room he can keep it at bay with his hockey robot mode with the promise that once he’s alone he can break. He’s the captain. He can’t just let go in front of his guys each time he could have performed better. 

Jack let his duffle bag slip off his shoulder to the floor with a thump once his door clicked shut behind him, locked and secure. He strips down to his boxers before falling onto his bed. He tries to hold back. 

He can’t help but wonder how he can even imagine he’ll make it in the NHL if he can’t handle one hard loss. Eighty-some games, maybe more depending on the playoffs. There are so many hard games and possible losses. How can he ever deal with all that?

The mattress dips on the other side of the bed. After a moment of rustling, Shitty pulls Jack to him. As his arms circle around Jack the dam cracks 

“Let it out, Jackintosh,” Shitty whispers into Jack’s damp hair. “I’ve got you.”

Jack turns his face into Shitty’s bare chest and let’s himself go. He feels Shitty’s mustache catch in some of his hair when he kisses the crown of Jack’s head. He rubs Jack’s back and feels him shaking against him as the tears come. 

Maybe Jack will always take losses a little harder than he should, but at least for now, he doesn’t have to do it alone. Jack may think he’ll always take hockey too seriously and take it out on himself too hard, but Shitty knows better. 

Shitty’s watched, over the past three years, Jack change bit by bit. He doesn’t get like this after  _ every  _ loss. He isn’t as hard on himself as he used to be. The anxiety is still there, just like it always will be, but Jack knows how to cope and he tries to not make it all harder on himself. And Shitty knows that he’ll get better over even more time with being kinder to himself. 

He cards his fingers through Jack’s hair and starts telling him about a discussion he and Lardo had the other day about silly putty versus play doh as the prime childhood activity. Lardo said play doh because of the color variety and sculptures and the gross-ass taste. Shitty had said silly putty because of the transference of ink, the sound when you stretched it too fast when it was still cold and snapped. 

As the story went on, Jack’s fingers loosen and the shaking stops. Shitty hears a wet laugh from Jack when he talks about the first time he remembers eating play doh. 

Jack turns to look up at him. His eyes are red, puffy, and still wet. The tear tracks stop about mid cheek--where they had transferred Shitty’s chest. He brushed the pad of his thumb over Jack’s sharp cheekbone. 

“Thank you,” Jack whispers. “Thanks for...being here.”

Shitty leans down slowly to press a quick peck between Jack’s eyebrows.  

“Always,” Shitty response.

He knew that just because they didn’t label it didn't mean it wasn’t so important and big and full of feelings, but Shitty did realize that it wouldn’t last. He knew they wouldn’t have whatever this was forever, and maybe that was okay because they would always be friends--best friends. Shitty would make sure neither of them lost sight of that. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please let me know what you think in the comments and kudos are greatly appreciated! <3  
> Feel free to come find me on tumblr: [softkent](http://softkent.tumblr.com/)


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